Friday, February 18, 2005

Weekend Preview (Not Really)

Well, it’s All-Star Weekend, which certainly can be exciting, but really it has no fantasy value whatsoever. I really tried to write this column a couple times with things like, "Look at the rookie challenge to see who’s gonna be great in the second half!" or, "will the winner of the 3-point shootout shoot more 3’s in the second half?" Stuff like that. But really, none of this matters too much. Actually, what matters the most is that guys who are dealing with minor injuries or the flu or something along those lines get a chance to rest up and get better. And the things that could most affect your fantasy team will not be happening on the court, but rather in the back rooms of the downtown Denver hotels, as GMs bargain and barter with each other, and potential deals could be made. We’re not going to pretend to be the experts in this category, either. Although I will take this chance to once again recommend that the Wizards and Pacers swap Kwame Brown and Ron Artest. Seriously. Anyhow, with nothing to preview, wha’ happened last night?

A Light SlateEven last night didn’t provide us with too much fantasy-wise. There were, though, some interesting numbers in the box scores. For example:

Jason Terry playing only 24 minutes. After going 2-8 against Seattle on the 13th, Terry has gotten only 25 and 24 minutes the last 2 games, losing major minutes to Darrell Armstrong. Despite exploding in January, he is still at the whim of Don Nelson, and with Marquis Daniels returning soon, you just don’t know how which Jason Terry you’re going to get from here on out. This might be a nice sell-fake-low opportunity on Terry.

Wally Szczerbiak getting 26 points in 29 minutes. Wally World is one of my favorites to break out after the break. The only reason Latrell Sprewell is getting ANY minutes right now is to bump his trade value. Should he actually get traded, look for Szczerbiak to get major minutes and looks at the basket as the #2 option for the Timberwolves.

Jim Jackson and Walter McCarty combining for 0 points, 5 boards, 1 TO and 3 fouls on 0-5 shooting. Yikes! While Phoenix may be the only team in the league where all of their starting 5 can start for your fantasy team, it looks like the guys shoring up the bench are going to be pretty useless. This was a pretty extreme case, but nonetheless, those of you who picked up Jackson after he got moved to the desert can probably let go of him.